Sappi Europe, the leading European producer of coated graphic paper and packaging and speciality papers, has partnered with Shippeo, the European leader in real-time transportation visibility solutions. This partnership will create a fully transparent supply chain helping to boost efficiency and customer satisfaction through innovative digital supply chain capabilities.
Sappi Europe employs 5,600 people across the region producing 3.7 million tons of paper and 1.12 million tons of paper pulp each year across ten mills. Sappi Europe is part of South Africa-based Sappi Limited one of the leading global providers of pulp, paper, packing and sustainable woodfibre products and solutions. This partnership with Shippeo will see real-time visibility incorporated into internal transportation and last leg customer deliveries across the continent.
There is an ongoing need for supply chain cost reduction, greater customer focus with higher service levels. Digitizing processes in the supply chain is therefore a key focus area. Being able to provide real time delivery updates will increase internal efficiencies and improve overall customer service.
Shippeo’s solution offers “predictive visibility” of supply chain transportation, enhancing the customer experience by providing a reliable estimate of when an order will arrive with the customer as well as a faster response to customer inquiries on goods in transit.
Proactive sharing of the live delivery status with customers ensures early warnings are given on potential delivery delays.
In addition to facilitating a better customer experience, the improved transparency across its supply chain network will enable Sappi to achieve considerable improvements in efficiency. The company will now be able to measure and manage carrier performance in real-time, as well as benefit from faster and more efficient information exchange and communication between customer service, logistics and carrier teams. Insights drawn from resulting data will also help to drive continuous improvement of operational processes.
“Our customers rely on the timely delivery of our high-quality products to accommodate their production processes,” says Rudi Barthels, Head of Supply Chain & Procurement Projects, Sappi Europe, adding that “by collaborating with Shippeo and our transportation partners, we aim to exceed our customers’ expectations by offering a predictable consistent and reliable delivery experience.”
Dennis van Bodegom, Director Shippeo Northern Europe, is thrilled to welcome Sappi Europe into the Shippeo community. “Like many industries, the luxury paper and woodfibre sector is increasingly moving towards just-in-time deliveries. This means the logistics and communication is key, both for Sappi’s customers and for the customer service managers, who are used to getting customer inquiries around deliveries. I’m confident that our cooperation will lead to an optimised and proactive supply chain, for the benefit of Sappi as well as their partners and customers.”
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